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Ash

[Status Effect Gained]

[Niven\'s Blessing]

When Satsuhiro and the half-demon walked into the portal, the first thing they noted was the slightly sour smell they encountered on the other side. It felt like acid was in the air, sliding into their lungs with every breath. Ash scowled and looked around. 

They had ended up in a barren wasteland. Whereas before, while the realm Ash had ended up in had been an altered version of the world, it had still maintained the lush vegetation of the forests. Here though, there was nothing. A few small plants growing out of dirt here and there, but no trees, no clouds even. 

"Hm..." Satsuhiro crouched and touched one of the plants. "It seems we\'ve been sent into the southern regions." 

"This is what the south of the world looks like?" Ash asked. "There\'s nothing here. It\'s so... Empty." 

"A small desert," Satsuhiro nodded. "Surrounded by rivers. At the center of it all, should be... Ah, look over there." He pointed to the west and Ash followed his line of sight. 

In the far, far distance, she saw what looked like a human city. 

"That\'s Amber," Satsuhiro stated. "One of the farthest cities from the capital. Well, we had an idea of it before but that pretty much confirms it. This is an alternate version of the real world."

"Uh, good to know, but does that mean anything?" Ash asked. 

"Maybe, right now the priority, aside from finding a way to close these things, is to see if there\'s a logic to where these portals are opening. If we can anticipate where the next ones will appear, we can set up defenses around them ahead of time." 

"Okay, so, what now?" Ash asked. 

"You said you saw spires going into the sky, right? Let\'s see if we find any." 

It didn\'t take long to do so. Ash turned around and saw three spires in the opposite direction from the city. They were almost as far away as the city itself was. 

"Come on," Satsuhiro said. "Let\'s get moving." 

Ash couldn\'t tell if she felt cold or hot here. She hugged herself as she walked, seeing her breath coming out as steam into the air, but in between the shudders, she felt hotter than normal. Everything was so empty that she almost wished she did find some demons to fight, just so she could focus on something other than the eerie feeling that currently surrounded her. 

Everything about this place feels wrong... Somehow though, it\'s like my body can\'t get enough of it. 

Shaking her head, she tried to see what else she could find around her. The hills of dirt rose and fell as the land stretched almost endlessly, however, she could pick out a few things as she scanned the area. 

Firstly, she\'d been wrong in her initial assessment. There actually were some trees, but they were desolate, lonely things scattered around the land. Second, she could see that at a point to the far east, the land began to change color, darkening a little. Satsuhiro seemed to disregard both of these things, heading straight for the spires so she assumed she should as well, opting to just follow him. 

They finally ran into their first enemies when they stumbled upon some demons fighting over... 

Is that a corpse?  Ash thought, raising a brow as she saw them tear into the body. However, the sight was weirder the more she looked at it. Besides the two demons fighting, there was another riding what looked like an overgrown pig, a shield, and a club in its hands. 

Level 19

MP: 100/100

Level 19

MP: 80/80

Level 20

MP: 100/100

"Hm, well, that\'s new," Satsuhiro said. Ash assumed he was talking about the riding demon. 

"You haven\'t seen that before?" 

"Nope," Satsuhiro shook his head. "Considering the archers we saw at Pearl, I think it\'s fair to say that the demons\' levels aren\'t the only thing improving. They\'re developing more advanced techniques behind closed doors, in the privacy of this realm. I see." He nodded to himself. "Let\'s go ahead then. Is the buff active?" 

"Yeah," Ash transformed her sword. 

"Alright. You should be fine. Ironically, I might be the weak link here." Satsuhiro snorted. "Alright, here, I\'ll start." 

A short incantation later, a surge of fire struck the riding demon in its face. With that attack, the others noticed them, and soon, their little duel was postponed in favor of killing the new humans who had arrived. Ash narrowed her eyes at them, preparing herself for this fight. 

---

Keiko

"By the way, do, uh, non-Zayama people ever try this?" Keiko asked. 

"No, the techniques found here are said to be magically restricted so that only Zayamas can use them. With them, you will be able to fight enemies using patterns and attacks they couldn\'t possibly replicate. Literally." 

Along with her teacher, the two Zayamas continued on the eastern path until eventually, they drew close enough to the city of Onyx to where they could see it clearly, though it was a ways away from the castle they were heading for. From it though, Keiko noticed grey smoke rising to the sky. 

"Is the city on fire?" Keiko asked. 

"Oh, no, no. That smoke is probably coming from the factories." That was a word Keiko hadn\'t heard before. 

"Factories?" 

"Yes." Haruna nodded. "Onyx is the industrial center of the Jewel Empire. The most technologically advanced city in the world, even more so than the capital, though it is assumed that soon, the inventions they have made will find their way in Jade." 

"What is it like?" Keiko asked. 

"Hm, I\'ve only been there once or twice, so my memory of the place is slightly lost, but I remember a few things. For one, they had these little balls of electricity that produced light strong enough to illuminate an entire home. They also had these strange metallic horses, though I found the real thing to be better," she said as she patted the animal\'s head. "Those were the ones that stuck with me the most, but maybe after we\'re done with the castle we can take a detour and look around in there." 

"I- You think so?" 

"Sure. It is right there, after all." 

As Haruna chuckled a little, Keiko continued to gaze at the city with some wonder.  As large as it is, right now, Jade feels so small. 

"We\'re almost there," Haruna stated. "Once we arrive, we\'ll take a moment to gather ourselves and head in." 

Just as she said, when the path to the castle became clear enough to traverse on foot, they got off the horse and Haruna tied him to a nearby tree. 

"Calm your nerves," she said as she pulled out a couple of bottles of water from her bag and tossed one to her. "You\'ll need to be focused entirely on the fight once you\'re in there." 

"Do you know anyone who\'s managed to get through this?" Keiko asked. 

"... One man, yes," Haruna smiled sadly. "My husband." 

"Oh, really? Uh, did he give you any tips or something?" 

"It would be quite hard for him to do so," she replied chuckling. "He\'s passed away." 

"O-Oh... Sorry..." 

"No, no. It was a while ago. Do not worry about it. He died honorably." 

"Uhm... How did it happen? I-If you don\'t mind me asking."

"Same way most warriors die nowadays," Haruna shrugged, "fighting the demons. That..." she looked down. "Will likely be most warrior\'s fates in the near future as well, considering what happened at Pearl. But, enough about that," Haruna put a hand on Keiko\'s shoulder. "Let me know when you\'re ready, and we\'ll go in." 

"... What can we expect?" 

"I only know what I\'ve said so far," Haruna replied with a sigh. "As I said, I myself have not succeeded in completing this gauntlet. I only know what others have said. Five floors, each one holding different challenges. Apparently, they have to do with some of the great Zayama warriors that have existed across history, but we\'ll only know the specifics as we attempt each one." 

Keiko looked down at her own hands. Clenching them into fists, she looked back up at Haruna. 

"No point in stalling, right?" She said softly. 

"Indeed," Haruna smiled. 

"Alright. I\'m ready." 

With that confirmation, the two Zayamas began walking the path. The castle was buried between a collection of bamboo trees, leaves on the ground cracking as the pair walked over them. Ahead, they saw it. 

It resembled the Compound in some ways, but this place was colored in the kind of gold that would fit well in Jade. An impressive, tall structure, built almost to resemble a golden dojo. Each floor had a few closed windows, but at the top, the walls were open, like it was a balcony. At the sides, Keiko could just barely see the staircases that led to the other floors. 

Haruna walked ahead of her, and then, she pulled out her two swords, holding them out. Keiko pulled out her katana. 

With just a nod to confirm what they were doing, they entered the first floor. 

The first thing Keiko saw was a suit of armor sitting in the middle of the room, a katana, far longer than the one Keiko had, resting in front of it. At first, Keiko thought it was an empty suit somehow sitting upright, but then she noticed the blue smoke coming from the suit\'s holes. It almost resembled a person. From the holes in its helmet, Keiko saw blue flames spark up, like smoking eyes looking back at her. 

And finally, with clanking metal, the ethereal body reached over and grabbed the katana, standing up and entering a fighting stance. Keiko scanned its level. 

Level 20

MP: 100/100

She then looked at her master and compared them. 

Level 25

MP: 100/100

Keiko nodded to herself. 

Time to prove yourself, Keiko. The world needs this. Don\'t let them down. 

And so, she aimed her blade at the spiritual warrior as well.